In an analysis of two German Hodgkin Study Group trials reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Bröckelmann et al found that second-line treatment with conventional polychemotherapy resulted in similar second progression–free survival (progression-free survival-2) durations vs high-dose...
A strategy for giving intermittent, high doses of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor sunitinib seemed to be well tolerated by patients with advanced cancer and increased drug concentrations in solid tumors, which was associated with improved survival. This research was presented by Gerritse et al at the ...
A study by Liu et al published in Molecular Cancer Research investigated why Black men appear to be more likely to develop aggressive prostate cancer than White men. Researchers found that prostate tumors in Black men had higher frequencies of distinct genetic alterations, which may contribute to...
Despite the increasing use of hematopoietic stem cell transplant as curative therapy for children with cancer and other life-threatening diseases, new research suggests that children who undergo a transplant for cancer may be more likely to die of treatment-related complications if they live in...
In a first-in-human phase I trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Salamero et al identified toxicities and activity associated with iadademstat, an oral first-in-class lysine-specific histone demethylase 1A (LSD1) inhibitor, in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid...
The treatment of recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer has not changed much in recent years, but according to preliminary trials presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Virtual Congress 2020, checkpoint inhibitors and antibody-drug conjugates may become new options. In the...
A nonsurgical treatment option for rectal cancer that preserves quality of life may be safe for selected patients, according to a new study comparing it with standard surgical treatment. These findings were published by Beard et al in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons and were...
As reported in JAMA Oncology, Dess et al have developed a novel clinical prognostic stage group system for nonmetastatic prostate cancer that “meets criteria set forth by the American Joint Committee on Cancer [AJCC] Precision Medicine Core committee… [and outperforms] the existing [AJCC] system...
Jing Li, MD, PhD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses phase III results showing the use of stereotactic radiosurgery in patients with 4 to 15 brain metastases, compared with whole-brain radiotherapy, may better preserve cognitive function and minimize the interruption of ...
Researchers have found that a class of commonly used heart drugs may also improve patients’ responses to PD-L1 inhibitors, according to preliminary findings presented by Strauss et al at the 32th EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics (Abstract 7). Angiotensin...
Bladder preservation with trimodality therapy may be a safe and effective alternative to cystectomy for selected patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, according to results from a phase II trial presented by Coen et al at the virtual 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO)...
In an Italian phase II trial (GIMEMA LAL2116) reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, Foà et al found that first-line induction and consolidation treatment with dasatinib plus blinatumomab produced a high rate of molecular response in adults with Philadelphia chromosome–positive acute...
In a single-center analysis reported in a research letter in JAMA Oncology, Copeland-Halperin et al found that early trastuzumab interruption and interruption resulting in a cumulative trastuzumab dose ≤ 56 mg/kg were associated with significantly poorer recurrence-free survival in patients with...
The advent of effective combination chemotherapies has changed the treatment landscape for metastatic pancreatic cancer, extending median survival and leading to durable responses in a subset of patients. However, perpetual chemotherapy is cumulatively toxic, leading to progressive bone marrow...
The long-term results of the pivotal SOLO-1 trial have shown that maintenance olaparib more than doubles the 5-year disease-free survival time for patients who have newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer with BRCA mutations, according to an update presented at the European Society for Medical...
A study by Marsavela et al published in Clinical Cancer Research evaluating the predictive value of pretreatment circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) to inform therapeutic outcomes in patients with advanced-stage melanoma relative to type and line of treatment has found that baseline levels of ctDNA...
A new study points to a need for oncologists to ask their patients about sexual health after chemotherapy, radiation, and other cancer treatments. In a survey of nearly 400 cancer survivors, 87% said they experienced sexual side effects, but most also said their oncologist had not formally asked...
The number of radiation therapy facilities in the United States has grown by 17% over the past 15 years, according to a new study presented by Maroongroge et al at the 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting (Abstract 203). However, this growth has disproportionately...
A new study finds that the racial composition of clinical trials involving radiation therapy does not match that of the U.S. population. Examining trials from the past 23 years, researchers found that roughly 12% of trial participants were Black, which is less than the 13% population composition of ...
Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) was superior to conventional radiation therapy in reducing pain from spinal metastases in a phase II/III study reported by Arjun Sahgal, MD, and colleagues at the 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting (Abstract LBA 2). More...
Delivering stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT, also called stereotactic ablative radiotherapy) in either one or four treatment sessions led to similar outcomes in patients with up to three lung metastases in the randomized SAFRON II trial. The study, reported by Shankar Siva, PhD, and...
A new drug designed to treat cancers in patients with an altered BRAF gene showed activity and had a favorable safety profile in an early-phase trial. These findings were presented by Janku et al at the 32nd EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics (Abstract LBA-05)....
In the Swedish ARTSCAN III trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Gebre-Medhin et al found that radiotherapy with concomitant cetuximab did not improve outcomes vs radiotherapy with cisplatin in patients with previously untreated, locoregionally advanced head and neck squamous cell...
On October 27, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) posted a draft recommendation statement on screening for colorectal cancer. For the first time, the Task Force is recommending that screening start at age 45. This is a B recommendation, meaning the USPSTF recommends the service; that...
Arjun Sahgal, MD, of the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, discusses results of the first phase III trial to suggest that dose escalation with stereotactic body radiotherapy may be superior to conventional palliative radiotherapy in improving pain outcomes for patients with spinal bone metastases...
On October 27, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the FoundationOne Liquid CDx test for three new companion diagnostic indications to help match patients who may benefit from treatment with specific FDA-approved targeted therapies. The new indications are for alpelisib (Piqray) in ...
Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) may represent a new standard of care for patients with four or more brain metastases, replacing whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT) in this setting, according to a phase III study presented at the virtual 2020 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual...
The addition of the radiotracer fluciclovine to positron-emission tomography (PET) imaging for treatment planning led to superior failure-free survival compared with conventional imaging in men with prostate cancer who had undergone radical prostatectomy and were experiencing biologic recurrence of ...
Recent preclinical research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and BridgeBio Pharma, an affiliate of Navire Pharma, found that the novel SHP2 inhibitor IACS-13909 may be able to overcome therapeutic resistance mechanisms in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The data, which...
Editor’s Note: The ASCO Post learned of the death of Patrick Beauregard due to colorectal cancer on September 6, 2020. Just weeks after my wedding in late summer of 2017, I had a sudden bout of abdominal pain so severe that it sent me to the emergency room. I was just 29 years old and in great...
The editors of The ASCO Post are sad to report the death of Patrick H. Beauregard on September 6, 2020. The cause was colorectal cancer. Diagnosed with stage IV disease in 2017 at the age of 29, Mr. Beauregard dedicated the last 3 years of his life to raising awareness of colorectal cancer in...
Joan H. (Rosen) Marks, a pioneer in genetic counseling, died on September 14, 2020. She was 91. Ms. Marks received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, in 2019, in recognition of her contributions and leadership to the College and to society, the ...
A large cohort study1 finding that the risk of dying of breast cancer was increased threefold after a DCIS diagnosis may cause patients diagnosed with DCIS to ask what they can do to reduce that risk. Currently, there is little that most patients can do. “The lifetime risk of death following DCIS...
Among the success stories in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in children and young adults is the development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. The field of cellular immunotherapy was still in its infancy in 2012 when Emily Whitehead, then 7, became the first...
The seventh edition of the ASCO Self-Evaluation Program® (ASCO-SEP®) is now available online, expanding its reach to physicians and advanced practitioners. The latest edition features new content that addresses oncologic care in a global setting. The new edition of ASCO-SEP includes 22 chapters of...
Over the past decade, a prolific number of cancer memoirs have been published, and some have been award-winning bestsellers. When entering a crowded genre, it is best to have something that sets your story apart. Judith Dwyer Fugate did just that with a memoir about a rare tumor that has rarely if...
Disturbance of the gut microbial metabolism is thought to be the root cause of human diseases. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi affect their human hosts in numerous ways. There is evidence to support the theory that microbes, through their genetic makeup, gene products, and metabolites, play a role in...
Checkpoint inhibitors can be lifesaving for many patients with advanced melanoma, but those who experience disease progression currently have few treatment options. The combination of a tyrosine kinase inhibitor and an anti–PD-1 agent may offer some hope in this setting, according to a study of...
“Imagine that it’s 5 years from now, and we are in a situation where the cost of cancer care has flattened, and costs are even going down,” said Clifford Goodman, PhD, a Senior Vice President at the Lewin Group, turning to a panel of oncology and policy experts at his side. “What policies got us...
Radiation oncologist Abigail T. Berman, MD, was born and reared in Philadelphia, the daughter of an orthopedic surgeon whose passion for his work was an early influence on her decision to pursue a career in medicine. “My father absolutely adored his job and worked very hard, which inspired me to...
City of Hope in Duarte, California, announced the formal launch of AccessHope, a wholly owned subsidiary dedicated to serving employers and their health-care partners. Instead of requiring patients to travel to City of Hope, AccessHope exports insights from National Cancer Institute–level...
The expansion of telemedicine has been one of the most important developments during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here, we discuss some of the legal and ethical dimensions of expanding telemedicine services in oncology practices. As Royce et al discussed in a recent JAMA Oncology article, Congress...
As one might expect, the focus on older patients developed in surgical and radiation oncology at the same time as in medical oncology. As we have done in our overview of medical oncology, we may recognize a prehistory, past history, and present history in surgical and radiation geriatric oncology....
The ASCO Post is pleased to present Hematology Expert Review, an ongoing feature that quizzes readers on issues in hematology. In this installment, Drs. Syed Ali Abutalib and L. Jeffrey Medeiros explore the updated World Health Organization (WHO) classification of hematopoietic and lymphoid tissue...
As reported inThe New England Journal of Medicine by Jürgen Wolf, MD, of the Center for Integrated Oncology, University Hospital Cologne and University of Cologne, and colleagues, the phase II GEOMETRY mono-1 trial has shown durable responses with the selective MET inhibitor capmatinib in patients...
Over the past decade, the field of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation has made great strides, evolving into a curative procedure for blood cancers that once were almost always fatal. However, chronic graft-vs-host disease, whose biologic etiology remains unclear, continues to be the...
Formal discussant of the -IPATential150 trial, Henrik Grönberg, MD, Professor at Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, found the study results intriguing, especially in the PTEN-loss patients. “Biomarkers are the wave of the future,” he said. “The study population was compared with an adequately...
The PARP inhibitor olaparib reduced the risk of death by 31% compared with a second hormonal treatment (enzalutamide or abiraterone) in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer characterized by BRCA1, BRCA2, or ATM mutations, in the final analysis of the phase III PROfound trial...
This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to three scientists who have made a decisive contribution to the treatment of blood-borne hepatitis, a major global health problem that causes cirrhosis and liver cancer in people around the world. Harvey J. Alter, MD; Michael Houghton,...
Although KRAS is one of the most frequently mutated oncogenes in human cancers, an almost 4-decade long search for drugs that hit this target has been elusive—until now. Sotorasib (formerly called AMG-510), a small-molecule inhibitor of the KRAS G12C mutation, demonstrated clinical activity and...